? >> now bbc world news america. israel kills the leader of hamas in the of the, causing an escalation of violence. governments should stop cutting benefits and start creating jobs. welcome to manhattan, kansas. >> may know more about technology than a tomcat's knows about baking gingerbread. >> welcome to our viewers. israel killed the military

commander of hamas and launched a series of attacks. hamas vowed in this would open the gates to hell. military action will continue. >> for the people of gaza, it looked like a war, and as in most wars, civilians are caught up in the violence. the first target today was the biggest hamas's most senior military leader was typify and -- hit by a military strike. he died instantly. hamas says this is a major

provocation. good >> they will pay a price for this, because he was one of our most exceptional leaders. >> she sat at the top of the military wing. tonight israel published these images. the army released video footage of him being tracked and the moment when his car was hit. israel said the strike followed a wave of rocket attacks from gaza. >> i can just elaborate the target was to protect israeli civilians. they have been under constant rocket attacks for the last year. >> gaza is expected to face more casualties, among them children and at least one baby. there were questions about the

action. there has been speculation from the israeli media as the government needed to be seen to act forcefully. across azar, the news has spread fast. -- across gaza, the news has spread fast. hamas said this killing would open the gates of hell. in a few places, and gazans took to the streets to voice their support. it is almost four years since the last war. recently the world's attention has been focused elsewhere in the middle east, but the most deep-rooted conflict never went away. >> how serious is this situation, and what could it mean across the region?

>> this is why israel says it is attacking grosso, to stop palestinian rocket fire. israel also said the attacked leader had a lot of blood on his hands. the armed group says they are protectors of palestinians. after days of exchanges of fire, questions are being asked about the timing of the assassination two months before the israeli election. in the past, military strikes have been used to send messages about the toughness of israeli leaders. >> we will take whatever action is necessary to put a stop to this. this is not merely our right. it is also our duty. >> hamas has sworn to hit back. they said the same thing during the last gossan warner -- gazan

war. this showed limitations against israel's army. before the assassination, the egyptian government had been working to establish a cease- fire, and efforts have been praised by top security officials. egypt's president is a leader of the muslim brotherhood. the assassination will be seen as a calculated and dangerous insult. egypt strongly condemns what israel is doing in gaza. this is an unacceptable act, and we deeply condemn it. >> what has changed since the war? the west and israel have lost their most reliable friend, and egypt's president mubarak. they saw him as an indispensable part of the solution at times like this. >> heightened tensions in the middle east tonight.

in other news from around the world, the united nations secretary general ban ki moon has set a report on the failure to attack civilians. -- has said a report on the failure to attack civilians will have a profound impact. in iraq, simultaneous car bomb attacks across the country have killed at least 17 people. dozens were injured. the attack struck baghdad and other cities. it is not clear if the attacks are the work of one group. across europe, tens of thousands have taken to the streets in protest of rising unemployment and government austerity measures. workers in spain, portugal, greece, and italy went out on strike. gary hewitt reports.

>> hundred of thousands packed madrid to protest austerity. it throws down a challenge not just to the spanish government but to europe's leaders. protesters are trying to enforce a general strike by blocking roads. there were clashes with police, but protests were part of a europe-wide action with hundreds of thousands of people striking against spending cuts and austerity. >> all the cuts are bringing more unemployment. >> in madrid, protesters would from stall to stall, shutting -- pulling down shutters, turning on those using restaurants,

surrounding taxi drivers but continued working. there are some basic facts driving the process. spain is in recession for the second time in three years. unemployment is still going out. the economy is weakening, yet further tax increases are in the pipeline. >> there were protests in at least six european countries today. much of the transport was shut down in a country where unemployment is nearly 26%. in portugal there was a general strike. in greece, protesters cried, and enough is enough. the economy has shrunk 23%. >> they have to a pay attention to the social dimension in europe. at the same time, they have to be a bit more social. they have to be a bit more gentle, but i think they should

not step away from austerity measures. >> the stories of hardship and tragedy are increasing. a few days ago, a woman in northern spain committed suicide after being ejected by her home. these protesters are camping, and demanding this be stopped. people are sick of this, he said. sooner or later, it is going to explode. at times in recent weeks, it has seemed as though the eurozone crisis was weakening, but the real economy is worsening, and the frustration is available and s visible on spanish streets. >> today president obama was keen to talk about the fiscal cliff, the combination of tax hikes and spending cuts.

mr. obama was also forced to answer questions about the resignation of his cia chief and the events that unfolded in benghazi. >> the president of the united states, reelected and reinvigorated with big plans for his second term. >> i hear you have some questions for me. >> not the questions he might have to imagine a week ago. instead the white house is dealing with not a sex scandal of the cia director. >> i have no evidence at this point that classified information was disclosed. >> should the fbi have told him sooner about the affair? >> i am withholding judgment as to how the entire process surrounding general petraeus up.e of

we do not have all the information yet. >> general david petraeus resigned after admitting to an affair with his biographer, house last brother's night. 's file e-mails sent by pawlenty -- hostile emails sent by broadwell. barack obama is desperate to move on, but the message from capitol hill is not so fast. members of congress are troubled by questions about david petraeus. to address them, they summoned the man himself. general petraeus has agreed to give evidence behind closed doors about the killing in libya, including a u.s. ambassador. they want to know when they

became aware this was a terror attack and not a spontaneous protests. some republicans are demanding watergate-style hearings. >> i am concerned about american lives in benghazi, the president not telling the truth about what happened there and what he knew and when he knew it, and that is why we need a special committee. >> i think it is important to find out what happened in benghazi, and i am happy to cooperate in any way congress wants. we will provide information we have, and we will continue to provide information. he did speak about climate change, big themes that are being drowned out. >> for more on the president's press conference, i spoke with hans nichols, the white house correspondent for bloomberg.

>> the white house is insisting this is part of governing. this is a distraction for them. they do not necessarily want to answer questions about petraeus. use of the president going out of his way to embrace petraeus. it is not like the president can alienate petraeus before that testimony, but if you look, the president largely portrayed him. >> i think you want to talk about this fiscal cliff. >> one of the goals he had was restating his position on the tax side, and that is that increase needs to happen for wealthy americans. there are always two sides of the fiscal cliff. there is the tax side and the spending side. over 10 years, 1.2 trillion

dollars, but the question is, does the president support a temporary postponement? that is what i want to get to, because there is not going to be enough time unless you postponed. >> did you sense he was open to some kind of a deal with republicans? where does the deal lied? >> they did two steps forward, one step back. then he says he is open to the idea of having rates stay where they are apt, but finding the money by closing loopholes, so- called tax expenditures. the idea but it was open to all ideas. he wants to send a message that he is willing to negotiate. >> are you worried about market tumble? today the white house was down? >> the economic and visors,

everyone is concerned about what happened. nobody is quite certain about how markets react. one thing that is clear if we do go over, the president will have a stronger negotiating the president has a window after we go over. it is only for a couple of weeks, not much longer. >> do we get a deal before the end of the year, or do we go where the -- do we go right to the wire? >> it is difficult to see. i think we go over. >> thank you for that gloomy prediction. still to come, as china prepares to install new leaders, the reform of people are demanding. in ireland, an investigation has been ordered into the death of a woman refuse an abortion at a hospital in galway.

the 31-year-old suffered a miscarriage and died. abortions are allowed when a mother's life is at risk. >> she went to hospital in galway complaining about severe back pain. she was 17 weeks pregnant. she suffered a miscarriage to days later and died. her husband has taken her body back to india. i spoke to them by telephone. he claims medical staff to refuse to give his wife and abortion. >> unfortunately, it is a lot. >> she you believe if she would have been allowed the termination she wanted she would have survived? >> of course. >> ireland's health minister has ordered an immediate investigation into what happened. >> for anyone to have died

during pregnancy is something we are upset by. >> ireland has had a number of referendums on abortion, but the legal agenda has not been enshrined in legislation. although abortion have been allowed when a woman's life is they say legal confusion has to be end. >> i think there is a lack of guidelines. there would not have been a mechanism for doctors to determine what to do. >> question time in dublin parliament was dominated by the guest curator modern ireland has been reluctant to legislate, but this could turn now to be a turning point in-house irish history. >> after months of speculation,

we are about to find out who will takeover china costs -- china's leadership. there are growing calls for change. >> as they stepped aside today, now costs are going communist leaders congratulated themselves -- china's communist leaders congratulated themselves. this is often called sign of's century. -- china's century. many are not so confident. handpicked iron and now party leaders and un stamp, it will be unveiled tomorrow, but the question, can it continue to keep china's people excluded

from power. there is no sign the party is willing to engage with those who want real change like nine of's nobel peace prize winner. good he remains in this jail, serving 11 years for calling for western-style separation of power. >> people want democracy and freedom. in the constitution, it says people have the right to freedom of speech, freedom of publication, and freedom of a lot of things common -- a lot of things, yet it is hard. >> they caught the imagination of many. it ended when the communist party conceded, giving a free vote to choose new officials.

now the party is considering reform. looking beyond china, they have commissioned a report to singapore. it has become wealthy but kept a system where one party dominates the rec and parks the danger of not having political reform in the next five years -- where one party dominates. >> the danger of not having political reform, the chinese party would collapse if they do not do anything. >> doing something may also be risky. chinese communists have learned from the downfall of the soviet degree -- the soviet union that they could trigger a collapse of the system, but doing nothing could be dangerous, to to rec and parks if they do not make a change, they will bring it to a much more dangerous position. good the world will suffer from

it. >> china's rise means what happens here will have a huge impact on the rest of the world. now out here in the middle of beijing, they have been sealed off. in power the party looks out of touch, something the leaders will have to change. >> as china's communist party prepares to unveil a set of leaders, our website has comprehensive coverage, including immediate challenges that will be part of the agenda. here in the united states, plans to build one of the biggest laboratories to research pathogens has been in trouble. local ranchers were not sure about having it in their backyard because of concern about accidents.

>> behind the security fencing, the proposed site for the new laboratories it's eerily empty, but this is not new york. it is kansas. the plants are impressive. about half a million square feet of facilities days. it will be the only lab in the u.s. capable of carrying out research on larger animals. >> it is essential to be able to conduct research on pathogens in livestock. >> they have chosen manhattan because they believe their existing facility is outdated and vulnerable to terrorist attack. a key reason in opting for the kansas location was the existence of a smaller laboratory next door to the site. just up the road at the new

laboratory, they will be able to handle some of the most dangerous animal pathogens in the world. the problem is the cost. in the current economic climate, the price tag is testing the political will to go forward with it. >> this is an expensive project, admittedly, but common sense and the reality of the science and the need will prevail. >> there has not been an outbreak of foot and mouth disease in the united states since 1929, when stephen anderson was just one year old. he lives 30 miles from the proposed facility, and he is concerned. safety reviews suggested there was a high risk of an accidental release of the pathogen like foot and mouth disease. >> the rich and powerful, they

kind of run the show. these guys will get up there and say, if technology is so good today, it is always going to be saved. they do not know anything more about technology than a tom cash knows about making gingerbread. >> -- then a tomcat knows about making gingerbread. >> president obama will have to decide if the need outweighs the cost. >> lun speaking from the ranchers. that brings the program to a close, but you can find content of faiths -- constant updates on our web site. be sure to check out our facebook page. thanks for watching, and please tune in tomorrow.

>> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding for this presentation was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard use their expertise to guide you through international commerce. we put our expertise to work

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